How to Safely Stop Periods with Birth Control Pills
Talk to your doctor about what will work best for you., Take your pills as your normally would, but skip the placebo pills., Discard the pack and begin a new pack of birth control pills., Keep in mind that some side effects of skipping your periods...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Talk to your doctor about what will work best for you.
Before you consider skipping your period, or stopping them for a long period of time, talk to your doctor about your best options given your medical history and the birth control you are using.
Your doctor may prescribe you birth control pills like Seasonique or Seasonale,which will allow you to only have your period four times a year (see Method 2 for more information).
There are two main kinds of birth control: pills that contain both progesterone and estrogen, and those that contain only progesterone.
Talk to your doctor about what pills you have and whether these will help you to skip your period. -
Step 2: Take your pills as your normally would
Birth control pills packs generally have 28 pills per cycle. 21 of them are called active pills (these are the pills you take to keep yourself from getting pregnant) and seven inactive pills.
The inactive pills are called placebo pills because they do not contain any progesterone, which means that they allow you to menstruate.
Not all packs of the contraceptive pill contain placebo pills.
Some just have 21 active tablets.
With this type of pill you take 21 pills a day at a time then stop taking pills for 7 days, when you have a period, then start a new pack on the 29th day, which is also day 1 of the new 28 day cycle.
To miss your period, simply don't skip taking your pill for the seven days.
Go straight onto a new pack after you have taken the last one in the old pack.
Check with your medical professional before doing this.When wanting to skip or stop your period, you would skip over these seven inactive pills entirely.
Instead you would only take the 21 active pills. , Once you reach the end of your 21 active pills, skip over the seven inactive pills and move on to the next pack.
By skipping over the inactive pills and beginning a new pack of active pills, you will effectively convince your body that it is not time to have your period.
Continue working through these new 21 pills, and then move on to your next pack of active pills to continue keeping your period at bay. , Your body is designed to have a period each month.
During this period, the walls of your womb slough off and come out as blood.
Although many women safely use birth control pills to stop their periods, there are some drawbacks that may occur.
These include:
Being unable to tell if you are pregnant.
When you have your period every month, you get a monthly confirmation that you are not pregnant.
If you skip your period every month, you will not get this confirmation.
It is important to remember that many birth control pills are 95% reliable, which means that there is still a 5% chance you could become pregnant.Some women do not react well to the continued use of birth control pills.
You may develop headaches or irritability if you do not give your body a break each month.
You may experience breakthrough bleeding or ‘spotting’.
This spotting can occur at any point during the month, and may cause you some discomfort. -
Step 3: but skip the placebo pills.
-
Step 4: Discard the pack and begin a new pack of birth control pills.
-
Step 5: Keep in mind that some side effects of skipping your periods can occur.
Detailed Guide
Before you consider skipping your period, or stopping them for a long period of time, talk to your doctor about your best options given your medical history and the birth control you are using.
Your doctor may prescribe you birth control pills like Seasonique or Seasonale,which will allow you to only have your period four times a year (see Method 2 for more information).
There are two main kinds of birth control: pills that contain both progesterone and estrogen, and those that contain only progesterone.
Talk to your doctor about what pills you have and whether these will help you to skip your period.
Birth control pills packs generally have 28 pills per cycle. 21 of them are called active pills (these are the pills you take to keep yourself from getting pregnant) and seven inactive pills.
The inactive pills are called placebo pills because they do not contain any progesterone, which means that they allow you to menstruate.
Not all packs of the contraceptive pill contain placebo pills.
Some just have 21 active tablets.
With this type of pill you take 21 pills a day at a time then stop taking pills for 7 days, when you have a period, then start a new pack on the 29th day, which is also day 1 of the new 28 day cycle.
To miss your period, simply don't skip taking your pill for the seven days.
Go straight onto a new pack after you have taken the last one in the old pack.
Check with your medical professional before doing this.When wanting to skip or stop your period, you would skip over these seven inactive pills entirely.
Instead you would only take the 21 active pills. , Once you reach the end of your 21 active pills, skip over the seven inactive pills and move on to the next pack.
By skipping over the inactive pills and beginning a new pack of active pills, you will effectively convince your body that it is not time to have your period.
Continue working through these new 21 pills, and then move on to your next pack of active pills to continue keeping your period at bay. , Your body is designed to have a period each month.
During this period, the walls of your womb slough off and come out as blood.
Although many women safely use birth control pills to stop their periods, there are some drawbacks that may occur.
These include:
Being unable to tell if you are pregnant.
When you have your period every month, you get a monthly confirmation that you are not pregnant.
If you skip your period every month, you will not get this confirmation.
It is important to remember that many birth control pills are 95% reliable, which means that there is still a 5% chance you could become pregnant.Some women do not react well to the continued use of birth control pills.
You may develop headaches or irritability if you do not give your body a break each month.
You may experience breakthrough bleeding or ‘spotting’.
This spotting can occur at any point during the month, and may cause you some discomfort.
About the Author
Nathan Collins
Specializes in breaking down complex practical skills topics into simple steps.
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